Transfer system for department stores and the like



M. LIEBMANIAND G. E. DOUGHTY.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 11. 1916.

Patented May 3, 1921;,

- TRANSFER CARD] TRANSFER CARD I L o /6 l U725 N- 1725 0 v OO Nam I Name Address Addrm Clerk Dept Amounfi ClerK DcpT. Amount 00 gTRARSFLA Name ' ClerK 'lnpt] UNITED. S A ES PA N L FICE MEYER L ner/IAN AND GEORGE E'DOUGHTY, OF NEW YORK,- N; Y.

rRANs ER SYSTEM FOR DEPARTMENT STORES AND TI-IIE'YTLIKE.

. Specification of Letters Patent. H 'Patnted lfla g 192,1

Application filed March 11, 1918. Serial ITO/221,821.

To all whom it mag concern:

' Be it known that we, MEYER LIEBMAN and GEORGE E. DoUeHTY, citizens of the United States, and residents of. New York city, county of New York, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful .Im-

' provements in Transfer Systems for Department Stores and the like, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to cards for facilitating shopping, especially in department stores, which devices are usually termed transfer cards. The transfer system is a plan whereby a customer can go from counterto counter, making apurchase at each, and have all the articles'purchased brought to one central point in the store so that the customer can pay for them collec tively and have them all packed together to take home, or for delivery. This system obviates the trouble and delay incident to paying separately for articles purchased at each counter and facilitates delivery.

In carrying out a transfer system is necessary that the sales slips that accompany all purchases should have the same identifying mark, or that the packages.

should have the same identifying mark, and this markmust also appear on the transfer card so that the articles may be collected and the purchaser identified with them.

This has been accomplished in difierent ways, one scheme being to furnish the customer with a transfer card or book having attached thereto a series of adhesive coupons all bearing the same number as the book and adapted, to be torn off successively and pasted on to packages as purchased, or on to companied by some device to mechanically.

control the printing of a similar identifying mark or number on each package purchased, or, preferably, upon the sales slip attached to each package. ical control of the marking of the sales slips 9r P k e is t im nate bu -em rr s 5 The object of the mechan-' far as possible, from the transactions and The thus avoid confusion and loss of time. invent on Wlll be described in connection I with the accompanyingdrawing, in which Figure 1 is a vlew'of a transfer card adapted to be used as a stencil totr'ansfer its number to'sales slips or packages;

Fig. 2 is a'view of av similar card having perforations adapted to control the printing of its number upon sales slips or packages by mechanical means; i c v Fig. 3 is a view of a transfer card having a stencil device attached thereto;

Fig-4 is a' view of a sales slip on which the identifying number of the-transfer card has been printed. I 1 i Referring to the drawing A indicates a transfercard having the usual lines and columns for inserting the details ofpurchases made by a customer and spaces for the name and address of the customer and an identifying number B cut out solthat the cardmay be used as a stencil for print: ing this number on sales slips or packages. On the card in Fig. 1 there isalso shownthe same number in print at- C,but this may i I be omitted when the card is usedas a stencil, as the stencil figures serve for identification. Fig.2 is showna card A similar to that shown'in Fig. "lexcepting that perforations B are provided to control any suitable mechanical meansfor printing the identifying number C. When the perforations B are used it is necessary'to have printed on the transfer card the identifying number C which inthe illustration is 1723. It will be understood that the perforations B cause the printing ofthe number 1723 on the sales slip accompanying each package or directly on the package. r V

Our invention may be carried out in various ways, and we have shown in Fig. ;3' a form 1n whlch the stencil or other means for controlhng the printing of the identifying formed in sheet metal, such as thin tin or brass, to which may be attached a transfer card of the ordinary type. this figure, A indicates the transfer cards,

and D a rectangular piece of sheet metal having cut or punched therein an identify- Referring to 100 marks on the sales slips or packages is the sheet. It will be understood that the sheet metal attachments to the cards may be used repeatedly, all of those used on any one day being usable on succeeding days indefinitely. Of course, those used during a single day or period of shopping must differ from each other. a

Fig. 4 illustrates an ordinary sales slip to which the number of the transfer card shown in Fig. 1 has been transferred by means of a pencil or ink brush, the number being indicated at F. s

In using our transfer system a customer before making any purchase secures a card and presents it at each counter where a purchase is made. The clerk notes the purchase onthe card and makes out the usual sales slip and then uses the stencil or perforations on the card or on the sheet metal attachment to control the printing of a similar identifying number or mark upon the package or, preferably, upon the sales slip. lVhere a simple stencil is used, as shown in F ig. 1, the clerk may trace the identifying figures with av pencil inserted in the openings, ormay use a brush and ink in the usual manner. Where machines are used, however, the card is inserted in the machine and the perforations will control the printing of the identifying number, such as 1723, or the printing of identifylng letters or groups of letters in a well known manner.

7 The result in either case is obtained mechanically and it is practically impossible for the clerk to make a mistake in placing the proper identifying marks upon the packages or sales slips attached thereto, and errors in' thecollection and delivery. ofpurchases are thereby avoided. It willbe understood that the means for mechanically imparting the identifying mark of the transfer card to successive sales slips on parcels may be greatly varied in detail without departing from the spirit of our invention.

Therefore, without limiting ourselves to the particular forms of the invention illustrated'and described, we claim 1. In a transfer system for department stores and the like, a transfer card having an identifying mark, spaces for recording successive individual sales, and having incorporated therewith means to mechanically control the printing upon successive individual slips or parcels, of an identifying mark corresponding to the mark on the card.

2. Atransfer system for department stores and the like comprising a transfer card having spaces for recording successive individual sales and slips for recording the respective sales, the card being providedwith an identifying mark and with meansformechanically controlling the printing upon each of theslips of a corresponding identifying mark. g 3. A transfer system for department stores and the like, comprising a transfer card having spaces for recording successive individual. sales and slips for recording therespective sales, the card being provided with an identifying mark and with perforations for mechanically controlling the printing upon each of the slips of a corresponding identifying mark.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures. v

MEYER LIEBMAN, GEORGE E. DOUGHTY. 

